NOVEL NEXT Chapter 210 – The Great Chu Passport
“Humph!”
“I understand now!”
“Duke Jin, Fan Li, he’s truly despicable!”
A young noblewoman, also a Golden Core realm cultivator, spat the words with venom, her eyes blazing with resentment.
“So, it was all a ploy! Using these new products from the Fan Clan Trading Company as bait, trying to trick us into staying in the Great Chu, where we'll continue to suffer and toil?”
Fan Chun looked her up and down, his gaze lingering on her flawless skin and expensive robes. This woman, pampered and sheltered like a delicate flower, had clearly never experienced hardship.
Before Fan Chun could retort, she continued, “Didn't the Fan Clan Trading Company always preach free trade, claiming the customer is king? Why the sudden change of heart? Have they become lapdogs of the Great Chu government, conspiring to prevent us from reaching the Brahma Sound Pure Land?”
Her words resonated with many of the “clever” women in the crowd.
“Despicable!”
“Choosing the Pure Land is our right!”
“How dare they use these new products to control us?”
“We'll go to the Pure Land, and we'll buy these new products! We won’t be denied our rights!”
“I have plenty of gold and spirit stones! How dare the Great Chu restrict my spending? I'll buy whatever I want, and they’ll deliver it to me!”
The garrison soldiers’ expressions darkened. They wouldn't harm these unarmed women, but their disrespect towards Duke Jin was infuriating.
These women had betrayed their nation. Now they dared to insult their benefactor?
“General, let’s open the gate and be done with them!” a deputy commander pleaded, his eyes bloodshot with suppressed rage.
He no longer saw them as delicate beauties, not even as fellow citizens. They were nothing more than unwelcome foreigners on Great Chu soil.
“Patience,” Fan Chun said. He finally revealed his second surprise.
“Ladies," he announced, "Duke Jin has a second gift for you."
He gestured, and a large banner unfurled atop the gatehouse, its words clearly visible to the crowd below.
"Notice Regarding the Great Chu Dynasty's Dual Citizenship Trial Implementation."
“Effective immediately, the Great Chu is implementing a dual citizenship system.”
“All Great Chu emigrants residing abroad are eligible to apply for a ‘Great Chu Passport.’”
“The passport offers protection and consideration. All emigrants holding a Great Chu Passport are entitled to the protection of Great Chu law. All nations allied with the Great Chu are obligated to offer consideration to emigrants holding a Great Chu Passport.”
After reading the notice, Fan Chun produced a small red booklet.
“This is the Great Chu Passport.”
The women stared at the booklet in astonishment.
Dual citizenship?
The concept was unprecedented.
However, they weren’t fools. They understood that leaving the Great Chu for the Pure Land was an act of betrayal, yet they had chosen to do so, swayed by Sage Ruler Yao Guang’s promises of a brighter future.
Facing the Great Chu garrison soldiers, they couldn't deny a flicker of guilt.
When Fan Chun introduced the Great Chu Passport and explained the concept of dual citizenship, their astonishment quickly turned to elation.
“I want to apply for a passport!”
“General Fan, I am the wife of Marquis Yingchuan! Please grant me a passport first!”
“Don't push! My grandfather was the former Minister of War, one of the Nine Ministers! I should receive a passport first!”
“Get out of my way! You're just a concubine's daughter, a bastard! I am the legitimate daughter of the current Minister of Works! General Fan, please grant me a passport first…”
The women squabbled amongst themselves, eager to be the first in line. Fan Chun, though maintaining a pleasant smile, couldn't conceal the coldness in his eyes.
Finally, amidst the clamor, a woman spoke up, her question suggesting a glimmer of intelligence.
“General Fan, if we apply for passports, can we return to the Great Chu whenever we wish? Will we still be able to purchase goods without restrictions?”
Her question silenced the crowd. They all looked up at Fan Chun, their eyes filled with anticipation.
“Indeed,” Fan Chun replied, his smile widening.
“Rest assured, ladies. All emigrants holding a Great Chu Passport will enjoy all the rights of a Great Chu citizen. You may freely enter and exit the Great Chu, and your spending will not be restricted.”
“Emigrants are even exempt from labor conscription. In the event of war or large-scale construction projects, they will not be drafted into the military or forced labor. If emigrants do not engage in large-scale commercial activities or generate profits within the Great Chu, they are also exempt from taxes.”
Fan Chun’s words were met with shrieks of delight.
They had every right, with none of the responsibilities or obligations. Wasn't this the life they had always dreamed of?
“General Fan, please grant me a Great Chu Passport!” The woman who had previously denounced Duke Jin's “despicable ploy,” her voice now soft and seductive, batted her eyelashes at Fan Chun.
“Prepare the paperwork,” he ordered.
Twenty scribes, summoned from the supply troops, set to work, processing passport applications on the spot.
They worked efficiently, completing over six thousand passports in a mere half-day.
Only one minor detail soured the women’s mood.
“Oh, this is outrageous!”
“A passport application fee of 250 copper coins?”
“They call this a gift? Shameless!”
Their complaints, though whispered, reached the ears of the soldiers, their gazes growing colder.
Copper coins were the lowest denomination in the Great Chu, far less valuable than silver, gold, or spirit stones.
250 copper coins was a paltry sum, a mere pittance for these noble ladies.
"General, why only 250 copper coins?" a deputy commander asked, puzzled.
"I don't know," Fan Chun shrugged. "Second Brother set the price. He said 250 has a special meaning, especially for these women."
The deputy commander nodded. If Duke Jin had decided, then it must be right.
Still, his curiosity persisted. "Duke Jin is being rather lenient with them. Is there a deeper meaning behind this? Could it be that he hopes they will one day return to the Great Chu?"
Fan Chun’s deputies were all loyal to the Fan Clan. He didn't hesitate to share his thoughts.
"These women are parasites. They contribute nothing to our society. Even if they defect to another nation, they are unlikely to achieve anything, let alone pose a threat to the Great Chu. However, when it comes to making use of waste, my second brother is unmatched.
Let them take their gift packages and show off to the women who have been misled by the Pure Land.
If we can turn all the women in the Pure Land into consumers, allowing the Great Chu to profit handsomely, wouldn't that be wonderful?"
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